I'll save you
by swAhILi2011
Summary: Cherry Sakuranbo hates her life. In fact, the only reason she even moved back to Japan was to deal with her family's financial problems by living with her grandma. --temporary hiatus also..writers block.....--
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hello! My first TMM Fan fic! Nyu! Kind of lame, but I hope you enjoy!

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The rain whipped Ichigo's Mauve hair against her face, but she couldn't let that slow her down. The aliens were right at her heels, and she had no time to transform.

Where is everyone? Her mind screamed as she turned around the corner, still a block from the café. It was now pouring and dark cloud loomed menacingly in the evening sky. Thunder boomed in the distance as the café loomed into view. Putting on one final burst of strength, Ichigo burst through the doors. For once, the café was empty, but Ichigo knew the others were in there somewhere. Slamming the door, although she knew it was pointless, she ran in search of her companions. But no one was there: the café was empty. Suddenly, the Aliens burst into the room. A powerful scent filled the air and Ichigo felt the land of unconsciousness creeping closer…

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"Nyu, look at this place! Oh, look at those adorable little houses!"

Cherry **Sakuranbo squealed in delight as she skipped around the airport,. She took a deep breath, savoring the first few minutes of her new, parent free life in Japan. Tokyo was all her mother said it was, although there weren't as many girls as she thought. Although, she was sixteen; hardly a girl anymore (no matter what her mother said). Laughing, she ran over to grab her bags and head to her grandmother's car. The limousine was pulled up in the terminal and her grandmother's porter opened the door for her.**

**"Gee, thanks, sir" she said in what she thought sounded very sarcastic, but the porter thought otherwise.**

**"Your welcome, Miss Sakuranbo" **

**Blushing, she left her trolley and swept inside. Her grandmother was sitting on one of the leather seats, and she gestured for Cherry to do likewise. **

**"Hello, Cheryl, I hope you found your trip to your liking?"**

**Cherry rolled her eyes at the formality.**

**"Grams, it's not Cheryl, it's Cherry."**

**"Oh, I'm sorry, Cherry. Oh, your mother always had a flair for the weird names."**

**Cherry nodded politely, used to being made fun of for her name. The fact that her hair was the color of Cherries: a dark, purplish-maroon color, it made her stand out even more. Her Mahogany eyes roved along the passing houses, buildings…**

**"Now, Cherry, hon, I hope you know you're going to start school right away tomorrow. Yopu made it into that really nice one you wanted."**

**Cherry just nodded her thoughts elsewhere. She wondered how her father was doing, with her brother. She hoped that now that she was out, their financial situation would improve. Her father would never accept money from anyone, no matter how much they needed it. Her brother, who was two years older, was already working instead of college, and her mother…well, no one had even seen her for three years, and she never dared to ask when or where. Her father always either changed the question abruptly or just ignored her altogether. Maybe her Grandmother…**

**"Come on, Miss Sakuranbo, we're here"**

**Cherry flung herself out quickly and gasped. The house was giant, painted a rosy pink color. It was no wonder her grandmother had all those people over; she definitely had the room for it. The porter bowed.**

**"This way, Miss"**

**She followed the porter cheerfully, the bright coloring making her feel like she was floating on clouds or in heaven. She hadn't been to Japan since her mother left, and she hadn't planned on coming back. But here she was, in the one place she never wanted to be again. Taking a deep breath, she told herself;**

**_You're doing this for dad; you're doing this for dad…_**

**"Here we are, Miss"**

**Curtyseying like her father taught her, she walked into the room he'd led her into. It was an inviting green with black furniture andedging. There was a large, walk-in closet already with many outfits hanging inside. She walked in, letting her hands trail over the slick silk, the soft cotton…**

**Was this really what she wanted? Was this really what she needed?**

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**A/N: Well, there it is. ReVIEw, please! I'll update after I get one. **

**Very short, sorry! Other's will be longer: this is just the explaining one.**

**Kira-chan-**


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Still no reviews! –Tears tears- well, except for bloodfat, but I think that that…SOB, really doesn't count.Aw well, onward march!

RECAPEE: **She walked in, letting her hands trail over the slick silk, the soft cotton…**

**Was this really what she wanted? Was this really what she needed?**

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Mint stood on the sidewalk, her eys unfocused. She didn't even seem to notice as her limosoine pulled up and the chauffer gestured her inside. Finally, he sighed.

"Miss Mint, we must leave or you'll be late to your piano lesson."

Suddenly, shaking her head as if to shake off something, Mint swept inside, ignoring her blathering mother. Her mind was on work, on not wanting to go back in fear. But she knew what she had to do.

"Hurry up, Jed, I'm in a hurry"

She ordered, tapping her fingers impatiently on the leather seat. She glared moodily out at the passing trees, at the place where she'd first met Ichigo… who'd gone strangely missing, the only thing occupying her mind. They'd gone to the café to grab Lettuce's forgotten book bag, and there was a strange smell in the air. They'd all began to feel dizzy, so Ryou ushered them outside…

"Miss Mint, we're here"

She flung herself out, racing towards the café.

"Ryou! Ryou, are you in here?"

"In here!" he called from the kitchen. Running, she pulled open the door. Glancing around, she perceived that Ichigo was still not there.

"So, she's still missing" she mumbled gloomily, pulling her frumpy maid outfit out of the closet. Sighing, she went to the bathroom to get changed. Lettuce stared after her.

"Poor thing, she's taking this so hard. She never even seemed to like her anyway. Now, if it were Zakuro…"

"…"

Pudding leaped around, cheering

"Well, come on then, gloomy gals, let's go find Ichigo!"

"Hold on now" Mint said, returning fully dressed, "We can't just go dashing off, without any hints. Now, what we should really do is hang around here, find out some stuff, you know: get an idea on who it is, what they're doing, and what they want. Come on, girls!"

Rolling their eyes at the procrastinating, bossy girl, they rushed in to start their jobs.

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"Hey, Cherry, you want to got to Mew Mew Café with us today?"

Cherry nodded shyly at her newfound friends. As they left, she noticed a girl with Blue-black hair waiting with a far-off gaze for her ride She was about to say hi, but her friends grabbed her shoulder.

"Don't, that's Mint: she's the richest girl in town. Well, aside from you, now."

Cherry nodded blindly, her gaze still attached on that one, almost estranged girl.

Where had she seen her before?

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Mint walked over to the four girls standing in the doorway.

"Hello, welcome to Café mew mew; please follow me."

She noticed that the one with the red hair was staring at her intently, as if trying to figure out something she just couldn't remember.

"Alrighty, well, here you are, girls. I'll leave you guys a few minutes to order."

Truthfully, Mint just wanted to get away from the mahogany stare of the one girl. Shuddering, she walked back into the kitchen.

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"I-I'll be right back."Cherry muttered, heading off in the direction the girl had just gone. She just needed to find out where she'd seen her before…

"…it was so creepy, I mean, I swear she's been stalking me from something…"

_What the Hell!?I'm no stalker!_

"What was that?"

Cherry covered her mouth and ran in the opposite direction.

_Crap, I didn't think I made any noise! Oh no, now what?!_

She dashed blindly down the long hallway until she saw a statue of a cat. She stopped for a breather when there was a bright flash of light. Screaming, she raised her arm in front of her face to block the light.

_What on this earth is going on here?!_

There was a shape in the light, something small, like an animal. Her entire body was filled with warmth, the kind that spreads through your body, to the tips of your toes, to your very soul.

She landed back into reality with a thump.

"What. The. Hell."

She was wearing a slutty costume, black and red with frills-MeNYA! FRILLS!-Now this definitely reminded her of something. And, she had a tail. A. Freaking. Tail. With matching ears. Oh Buddha.

"This way, I heard something!"

_Oh crap, I forgot; I'm hiding!_

But she had no time to run as the remaining four members of Tokyo Mew Mew rounded the corner with their creator.

"What the-oh crap, it happened didn't it?"

Cherry stared at them, with Dinner plate eyes.

"I-I-"

"Are you serious, is she a mew mew?"

_Mew Mew? HOLY CRAP, NOW I KNOW WHERE I'VE SEEN HER BEFORE! SHE'S A MEW MEW!!!!!_

"Hey, Cherry, right?"

Shivering in the warmth, Cherry nodded. "Are you guys really serious" she said to the blond man "am I really the new mew mew?"

Ryou nodded, "I'm sorry, it's wasn't even supposed to happen today, but apparently, "he took a deep breath "you're a perfect match for the DNA of the Japanese Mouse"

_WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!_

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A/A/N: Well, here it is. I promise, longer next time!!!!!!

Kira-chan-


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Hellodles, peeps! Kira here, and ready for more action. Also, here's response to all your comments!

Kurumi- Thanks SO much! I would love to stay in contact with you! Nyuu!

Howleron-I love you, I love you, I LOVE YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bloodfat-seriously, if you really were going to the loony bin, you shouldn't be this way. Maybe they're diagnosing you wrong or something…

Well, moving on, TO DER CHAPTER!!!!!!

RECAP: Ryou nodded, "I'm sorry, it's wasn't even supposed to happen today, but apparently, "he took a deep breath "you're a perfect match for the DNA of the Japanese Mouse"

_WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!_

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Cherry blinked slowly, staring at the Blond man standing in front of her. Or, rather, kneeling, in front of her. Her Held out his hand

"The name's Ryou Shirogane, I'm the creator of the Mew Mew Project. And these girls are" He pointed to each one as he spoke " Mint, Lettuce, Zakuro, and Pudding. They're the original mew mews."

_Holy crap, Holy crap, holy crap_

"Miss Cherry?"

_HOLY BLOODY CRAP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!_

Mint smacked her on the back of the head

"Yo, Cherry or whatever the hell your name is, he's talking to you."

_What? Oh yeah, that's right MINT'S HERE AND SHE'S A MEW MEW AND SO AM I!_

"My poor head" Cherry moaned, rubbing her temples. Ryou chuckled.

"That's how everyone reacts. Come on, let's go back to the kitchen and I'll let them explain everything."

She followed him while mentally arguing with herself.

_What is this, some kind of joke? I bet this isn't even real_

_**You know it is**_

_SHUT UP! _

_**Well, why not just let yourself believe it? You may as well; you're going to be stuck with this for perhaps the rest of your life.**_

_SHUT UP!_

"Cherry?"

She mentally shut out her arguing mind and looked up at Lettuce, who was standing in the doorway of the kitchen she'd eavesdropped on them by. She swept passed her and into the cherry room. There was a hanging scent of cakes and pastries. She let in a deep breath.

"It smells so good in here."

Ryou smirked "Thanks, it's my cooking: I make all of the desserts we sell here."

"Oh, seriously? I love this food,: my grandmother used to have it delivered when I lived here before!"

He looked surprised

"Oh, are you Mrs. Geryl Sakuranbo's** granddaughter?"**

**Rolling her eyes, Cherry nodded. **

**_Gosh, why does everyone always know me as, 'Geryls' Granddaughter'?!_**

"Oh, but that makes you the richest girl in town!" Mint said in a horrified voice " my title has been taken, ripped away from me like-"

"Just shut up, Mint, Mr. Shirogane needs to tell her so she can begin working!"

"Working?" Cherry said nervously: she hadn't planned on having to work. Lettuce nodded.

"We all work here, to catch up on what's going on, to gather information. I suppose you could call this our cover-up."

Ryou smiled "That's exactly right: this is our cover-up. And you, Cherry, are now going to be our newest recruit."

_GAK, WHY ME?! HOW ABOUT SOMEOONE WHOPB REALLY WANTS TO BE A MEW MEW!? I NEVER WANTED TO DO THIS! I HATE WORK!_

"Now, I suppose everything begins with Ichigo, where ever she is. She was our first project, the one that started it all. She was the former leader, her gene being a cat. Now, you have the DNA of the Japanese, albino mouse, hence the ears."

_Ears? Oh yeah, I HAVE FREAKING EARS!_

Um, are you all right, Cherry? You're a bit quiet"

"I'm fine" she mumbled, and he must've taken that, for he continued.

"And after her, of course, we had Mint, then Lettuce, Zakuro, and Pudding. And now you, Miss Cherry, are the last one. You're basically all of the others combined: you can use all of their powers, including one of your own. Also, your outfit" He gestured at her black and scarlet dress "Is also a mix"

"Ok" she said, with a mocking tone "I'm the new mew mew, I'm the 6th, the first one is missing, and now I'm her replacement, and I'm a mix of all of them. Correct?"

Grinning, Ryou nodded "Yes, and now, we need you to complete a task: Cherry, you need to find Ichigo"

Cherry blinked for a moment, and then her eyes widened "wait, I seriously have to go out and FIND her?!"

"Pretty much" Zakuro snorted "what a drag"

"What Zakuro is trying to say" Mint chimed in "is that we're glad to have you on the team!"

"Yeah!" Pudding squealed. Cherry blushed,: all these people, who basically needed…her….

_THIS IS SO CONFUSING!_

Suddenly, her tail and ears disappeared and her black-and-white school uniform returned. She sighed in relief

_Thank Buddha I _didn't_ have to try to go home in that outfit. _

Ryou held out a red and black maid outfit like the others had.

"Here, you may want to put this on before you go to work."

"Work? Oh right, work, here, at the café, right…"

Her knees wobbled like jello as she, shaking, took the outfit. She ducked into a closet and pulled it on. Not surprising, it fit her perfectly, actually showing off her thin legs and beautifully sculpted arms. Her Hair fell neatly across her shoulder, Burgundy curls perfect.

_This is all too good to be true. There's no way this is actually happening to me_

Cherry walked out, trying not to show her fear and surprise, but she was failing miserably. Lettuce frowned, and walked over

"Cherry, are you going to be okay? I mean, I know this is shocking, and it is kind of happening fast, but…"

"No, I'm fine" Cherry smiled hopefully and walked over to Ryou jauntily like the rich girl she was.

"Wow you look, well, beautiful!"

Cherry blushed again "T-thanks"

"Come on" Pudding said, grabbing her arm, "let's go work!"

_Thus begins the hell formerly called my life_

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A/N:Hurmmmm, still too short for my taste… ah well, REVIEW ONWARD!! I'll only update after I get another one that's not part of the conflict that is currently going on in my reviews(Although, if you seriously want to insult Bloodfat, by all means, carry on)

Kira-chan-


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Aw, I'm a sucker for my non-reviewing fans…here's another chapter

RECAP: "Come on" Pudding said, grabbing her arm, "let's go work!"

_Thus begins the hell formerly called my life_

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Cherry stood outside the café after two longs hours of work. Without Ichigo there, everyone had to pitch in: even Mint.

"What the hell am I doing here?" Cherry mumbled to what she thought was only the wind.

"You're here to help us" she jumped as a voice sounded from behind her. Ryou was standing by the arch that was the entrance to the café.

"What are you doing here?" she snapped, turning back around so he wouldn't see the blush creeping onto her face.

_What is HE doing here? Shouldn't he have gone home to his laboratory by now?_

"Miss Cherry, is that the way you speak to your boss?"

"You're no boss, Mr. Shirogane, you're just a…a…." she stormed of into the growing darkness rebelliously. Ryou chuckled to himself as he headed back to the café.

"Ah, she's the perfect fit. You're so good, Ryou: this time you've outdone yourself."

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Cherry pulled her thin jacket over her thin frame.

_Perhaps I should have waited for grandma…_

_**Oh yeah, and been alone with that creepy guy? Um, no way, girlie**_

_Did you just call me girlie?_

_**Yup**_

_You're going down_

_**Ha ha, LOSER**_

_GAK, WHY AM I EVEN FIGHTING WITH YOU: YOU'RE JUST MY OTHER CONSCIENCE!_

Cherry blocked out her quarreling conscience once more, and then proceeded through the park.

Now, I do have to admit, taking the dark, unsafe way instead of the clear, populated way was stupid on her part, but as her mind had been arguing at the time, I don't believe the thought occurred to her. Well, as she walked through the dreary, gloomy park area. Her arguing mind was funally beginning to bug her right about then…

_JUST SHUT UP!_

_Wow…_

_**Okay, miss bossy-pants…**_

_Pssssst, hey, do you think she'll notice if we whisper?_

_**I don't know, let's-**_

_SHUT UP, YOU TWO, I'M TRYING TO PAY ATTENTION TO ALL THE CREEPY STALKERS HANGING OUT IN THIS PARK!_

_**Oh…**_

_You go right on ahead…Ma'am…_

Satisfied that she could now keep a watchful eye on the path, Cherry headed towards home with a worried smile on her lips…

_Well, maybe this wont be so bad after all……._

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Kishu stood, arms crossed, amber eyes trcking the movements of the young girl in the park. So this was the new mew mew…how entertaining…

"Aw, can't we just attack her already: I'm bored" Tauto said, crossing his legs in midair. Kishu smirked

"Not too much longer now, fellas, just as soon as we give our report…let's go!"

And they sank through the ground.

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"Cheryl, where were you: I've been worried sick!"

Cherry ignored her grandmother as she pushed her away moodily, heading upstairs. Her grandmother huffed, stalking her upstairs. Cherry swung around, fuming.

"What, Grams?"

"Oh, nothing" her grandmother said in an innocent voice quite befitting a three year old kid. Cherry snorted and ran upstairs, quickly leaving her grandmother in her dust. Entering her room(and making sure there were no stalkers hiding in it), she locked the door and flopped onto her large, four poster bed. She pulled up her bag and pulled out the letter Ryou had snuck to her. She began reading it:

"Dear Cherry,

Here's your assignment in a nutshell: we need you to take this little mouse robot and seek out Ichigo. R2005, as this mouse's name is, can sense aliens, no matter where they are. You must do this as quickly as possible: Ichigo's life may be in your hands.

Sincerely,

Ryou Shirogane"

Cherry groaned and threw the letter onto her desk, pulling out the furry little black animal that he'd stuck in her bag. It didn't look like a robot, but she could never be sure…

"Squee, squee, mew mew approaching, mew mew approaching!"

Cherry nearly dropped the little animal in surprise as it squeaked out its message. After getting over the surprise, she rolled her eyes

"Of course a mew mew's approaching, I AM A MEW MEW!!!!!!"

Re-shoving the animal into her pack, she rolled over and fell into a dreamless slumber…

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A/N: Oh no, this one's even shorter than the other ones! Gwa, I'm sorry!

PWEASE REVIEW!

Kira-Chan-


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Hello again! Yay, review, time to update!

Oh, here's review reply:

Anime-Kunoichi: Thanks to you too! I don't get that many reviews, and so I tried the "don't update 'til they review" method, but I'm too much of a sucker for my non-reviewing friends. Also, thanks for putting me on both your favorite authors And favorite stories! I feel so loved-sniffles-

Recapee: Cherry nearly dropped the little animal in surprise as it squeaked out its message. After getting over the surprise, she rolled her eyes

"Of course a mew mew's approaching, I AM A MEW MEW!!!!!!"

Re-shoving the animal into her pack, she rolled over and fell into a dreamless slumber…

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Cherry woke up the next morning to the loud sounds of someone walking down the hall. Sitting up, she scratched her ear absently.

"That's odd; I shouldn't be able to hear that…"

"Miss?"

She jumped as the maid who'd been standing in the corner unobtrusively before stepped out, holding her neatly pressed uniform. She swung her legs over the tall edge of her bed and, yawning, grabbed the uniform.

"Thanks…" she mumbled sleepily, stumbling over to the bathroom that was connected to her room. She looked like some rat had infested her head, but that was normal for morning. Sighing, she took out her red-heart comb and pulled it aggressively through her curls. Her eyes shadowed her inside depression and sadness, but she didn't pay any attention to that. Putting her hair up into a ponytail, she smiled and then pulled on her uniform.

_I guess I'll just have to face it: I'm stuck with this now…_

_It's your own fault, loser. You should've not ever even come here_

_SHUT UP! _

Furious, she stalked out of the house and out to her limo. The black car still seemed way more than she needed, but her grams wouldn't hear of her granddaughter "stooping as low to walk to school". Cherry shivered uncontrollably as she curled up into the seat. Something just didn't feel right…

"Are you ready, miss?" Her chauffer called from the front. Cherry nodded but, realizing he couldn't see her, called "Yes". She stared out the tinted windows as the limo drove the mile to school.

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Ichigo blinked slowly as a dark room came into focus.

Where am I?

"AH, you're awake"

She swung around as far as her bonds would let her to see who the voice was. Her eyes widened as she realized: it wasn't any of the aliens she knew of. In fact, it looked almost…human. She snapped.

"What do you want with me?"

The woman laughed and walked over, her long, black cloak brushing against the tiled floor. Her face was hidden by a large hood, the only thing Ichigo could see was her piercing Grey eyes. She stretched out one of her long fingers, her long, red nail caressing her cheek.

"My dear mew mew, I only need your powers, and just the whereabouts of your five little friends."

Ichigo tried to keep her outside face strong, but inside she was terrified and confused.

_A-another mew? I thought Shirogane-san was done with the project!_

The lady chuckled wickedly.

"Yes, and we know you'll behave, because right now, we're tracking the newest mew mew, and we all know she's going to walk into a certain fellow I know. And although you've never met her, I'm sure you wouldn't want poor little her to get hurt for you…"

Ichigo ground her teeth: that was her one weakness. She couldn't allow that to happen, but then again, she couldn't allow them to kill this innocent young girl…

"Fine, give me a few days, and I'll tell you."

The woman snorted "yeah, and you think I'll believe that you're just going to be sitting in here, innocently? No, you have until tomorrow night. My accomplice should have the red-haired one by then."

Laughing, the woman turned on her heel and left…

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Cherry shoved her books into her bag wearily a as the bell rang. She was un-enthusiastic to go back to work, especially with that…Ryou there. Somehow, she felt like she should've been doing something else, like finding that one girl, Ichigo, or something. Her mind drifted to thoughts of her father, and the letter the principal had given her…

"Cherry,

Hey, how's it goin'? Me, well, I guess I'm doin' fine. The landlord threatened to evict me again, but no worry, I told him I'd get the money by tomorrow. For once, I can tell the truth. I got a new job on you grandmother's orders, and I get my first paycheck tomorrow.

Don't take this as saying I'm happy you're gone: in fact, it's the complete opposite. I miss you, Cherry, so much. I wish I could be there with you, but I don't want to impose on your grandmother any more. I'm sorry it had to be this way, Cherry, but there is no choice.

I'm sorry,

Dad"

Blinking back tears, she ran out of the school and carelessly bumped into someone walking in. Landing with a thump on the floor, she felt a pain jar her leg. Rubbing it, she stuttered

"I'm so s-sorry, I really am!"

The boy flicked his brown-black hair out of his face "Hey, no big: my name's Aoyama, and you are..?"

"Ch-cherry Sakuranbo, you know, Geryl's granddaughter?"

The boys' chocolate eyes twinkled as he laughed

"That's right, Geryl-san! Are you seriously her granddaughter?"

Blushing, Cherry nodded. Smiling, he shook her hand.

"It was nice to meet you, Cherry-san!"

Cherry waved until he was out of sight and then, realizing that she'd been on the ground the entire time, sprung up.

"Oh no, was I really on the ground the entire time! Gwa, what am I going to do! Oh no, I'm going to be late! Wah, why me?!"

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"Finally" Mint sniffed as Cherry burst into the dressing room. She leaned against the doorway, gasping for air.

"Shut up" Cherry muttered darkly as she pulled her maid outfit on: today just wasn't a day to mess with her. Mint raised an eyebrow to the red-haired girl in front of her.

"What is YOUR problem?"

Cherry ignored her and pulled her shoes on. After tying the laces, she stormed out angrily. Mint stalked out behind her but instead went up and tapped lettuce on the shoulder.

"Yo, Lettuce, can I, um, help you?"

Lettuce's eyes blinked behind her large glasses: did Mint just ask to…help?! No way, that was too weird.

"Ha ha, Mint, I'm sorry, but isn't it your afternoon tea time?"

Mint snarled and grabbed Lettuce up by her collar

"Look, I'm NOT going to stay with that creepy girl: you can take my kitchen-tasting duties."

Lettuce gulped and her wimpy nature gave in

"A-alright, Mint, I'll do it. But really" she added "she can't be all that bad"

Mint scoffed "Whatever, I really don't care"

She let go of Lettuce and walked behind the desk where everyone payed. This had to be better than that girl's eyes following her, a red stare tracing her every move….

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Kishu watched the little cat fights occurring all over the café in amusement. However, Pai was not amused.

"Come on, Kish: if we don't bring that girl to Deep Blue, who knows what he'd do. He said the lady wants her by tonight, something about that one girl, the cat."

Kishu's ears twitched at the mention of Ichigo. He'd never wanted to assist in her capture, but with deep blue, there was no choice but to do it…

Taruto squealed "Look, there she is! Heh, isn't she a cutie! Ouch!"

Kishu stared at his hand, smirking "shut up and get in there, you two. And remember: no mistakes this time."

Nodding, the other two teleported away…

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Cherry smiled vaguely as she swiped at the sweat on her forehead.

_This is exactly how it should be: no one else around, no one to be creeped out by me, or making fun of me, or-_

A rustling of leaves dstracted her. She grabbed the broom she'd been using fiercely.

"Who's there?" she called out menacingly "I know you're there."

She heard snickering and a voice called out "Oh, shucks, well, maybe we should show ourselves now, Pai?"

"…"

A crash from overhead forced Cherry to look up and Kishu waved.

"Well, hello there, Miss Cherry, I believe that's your name."

Cherry growled "Go away, now, I can't be bothered with simple perverts like you now"

Kishu smirked

"Oh, look, the little berry has a temper. Look, if you just come with us quietly, I promise…"

Kishu stopped in midsentence as the broom rammed into his gut. Cherry pulled it back and twirled it expertly.

"Hpmh, suppose I didn't take that self defense class for nothing. Good day, sir."

Finally seizing their chance, Pai and Taruto sprung out of the bushes. Pai landed a carefully calculated punch in Cherry's gut and she blacked out. Kishu floated down and, picking up the frail girl carefully, teleported away.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Mint washed her hands in the sink and then rubbed them on a soft towel. Poking her head around the door to the outside, she called.

"Yo, Cherry, you can come in now"

Silence. Mint sighed "Come on, Cherry, it's time to go home."

A piece of paper fluttered down to rest in her hands.

"Tokyo Mew Mew,

Greetings from the ever-popular Kishu and friends. We would like to inform you that we have taken Miss cherry with us. The only reason I'm writing this is that if she doesn't behave (which I doubt she will), Ichigo will be in trouble. I won't ask you to save her, although I'm sure you will, I only want you to know. Please give Mr. Ryou our master's greetings.

Kishu"

Mint's hands trembled as she turned back towards the café. The others were already getting ready to go home, but stopped when they saw the look on Mint's face.

"Mint, what happened?"

Lettuce asked, walking over.

"Oh my" she gasped as she read the note. She took it from Mint's quaking hands and ran over to Ryou.

"Ryou, sir, look: Cherry's been kidnapped!"

The blond man's eyes widened as he read the note.

"Tokyo Mew mew, time to do your job!"

"Mew Lettuce!"

"Mew Mint!"

"Mew Zakuro!"

"Mew Pudding!"

"Metamorphosis!"

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

A/N: Ah, finally, a pretty decent lengthed chapter( if I do say so myself). Well, please review! Here's comment replies!

KeslAPhantoM: Nwa, thank you! Cherry is a mew mew, and has the DNA of the rare "Japanese albino mouse" (Yeah, I totally made that up on the spot when I wrote it. Ah well…) Well, I'm glad you liked it: here's another chapter!

Xx-Hazelnut-xX: Thank you, I luv that part! Yes, her attitude is awesome (because it was made by me. JK) XD

Howleron: How much do I luv you, rona: let me count the ways…

Bloodfat: You're goin' down, biotch

E'cough, well, that concludes another useless rambling by Kira-chan. Sayonara!

Kira-chan-


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Why, hello everyone! Kira here, and ready for action! All comments will be added afterwards.

Recap: "Tokyo Mew mew, time to do your job!"

"Mew Lettuce!"

"Mew Mint!"

"Mew Zakuro!"

"Mew Pudding!"

"Metamorphosis!"

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

The door opened again, and Ichigo prepared herself. This time, a familiar face peered through the doorway.

"Kishu!" she whispered hoarsely, but he just walked in, not meeting her gaze. He led in a girl, looking not much older then herself, with burgundy hair that fell down her back in thick ringlets. She had piercing red-brown eyes.

_T-this is the sixth mew mew? _

Kishu flung the girl onto the newly made cot and then swept away without another word. Ichigo watched after him painfully, memories of him playing like a never-ending movie in her mind. But the girl in the corner didn't even seem to notice her pain: she seemed to be locked in some of her own. Ichigo crawled over to the cot and the mysterious girl.

"Um, hey, I'm Ichigo"

The girl didn't answer, but shook Ichigo's proffered hand. Her eye's seemed blank, like she was in shock or something, but there was a hidden fire deep down. Finally, she cleared her throat and spoke.

"I'm Cherry, Cherry Sakuranbo. Are you the first mew?"

Surprised, Ichigo nodded.

"And you're the last one. Do you have your amulet?"

Cherry cocked her head, and then shook it.

"No, I didn't get it yet. I suppose we can't even transform anyway, correct?"

Sadly, Ichigo nodded.

"I can't even begin to fathom how many times I've tried. No, they made sure I can't get out, and you too."

Cherry curled up.

"Great and the others don't even know we're here. How are we supposed to get out of here? And what am I doing here anyway if they already have you?"

Ichigo shrugged wearily "I don't know, but you're here, that we can't change. I guess we'll just have to wait to see if the others show up."

Cherry didn't say anything, but her mind reeled:

_How are we going to get out of here?_

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Mint stood atop a tree precariously, sighing.

"Where could she have gone? They couldn't have gone that far…"

"Mint! Do you see anything?" Lettuce called up, but Mint just shook her head.

"No, they're gone: I can't see them anywhere!"

Sadly, she leapt back down gracefully to land next to Zakuro. The wolf put her arm sympathetically around her shoulders in a very un-Zakuro like manner. Mint sniffed.

Thanks, one-chan, but I'm okay. Come on, let's go!"

Nodding, the other three followed after her as she ran towards the woods.

_She's got to be over here, I can sense something…come on, Cherry, Ichigo, don't give up!_

0o0o0o0o0o0

Back at he café, Akasaka and Ryou stood, faces nearly plastered to the computer screen. Akasaka typed rapidly. Ryou stood, putting on a calm face.

"Have you found anything yet, Keichiro?"

The brown haired man shook his head.

"It's odd; I can't even pick up either of their signals. It should be picking it up, even if they were in another dimension…"

Ryou just shook his head. "How could we have been so blind, Keichiro? All this time, they were plotting this…"

It was Akasaka's turn to shake his head.

"We couldn't have known they were planning this. For now, however, we'll just have to leave it to the girls to solve this one: there's nothing further we can do."

Ryou sighed and then walked away.

"Fine, I'm going back to my office. Call me if you find anything."

Akasaka smiled "Okay"

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Zakuro stood quietly underneath the lamppost.

_I'm going to be late for work at this rate…but as long as we find the others, it'll be worth it. There's something about that Cherry girl…._

Sighing, she jumped gracefully to the top of the post to get a better view. She put her hand over her eyes in the bright evening sun. There was still nothing, no matter how hard she searched…

"Well, look who's here: you're a mew mew, right?"

Zakuro swung around just in time to see Kishu pop into view.

"Why you" she snarled as he snickered.

"Hey, I'm not here to fight: I'm just here to deliver this letter from our master."

Laughing, he teleported away without a sound. Zakuro held the letter, still for a moment befire she jumped away towards the café to relay this newest piece of sad news.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Cherry woke up to a curtain of darkness. She couldn't even see where Ichigo had gone.

"Ichigo?" she called out softly, but there was no reply. She supposed that she was just still sleeping, and decided that maybe she should do likewise. But just as she was about to roll over and resume sleep, a ray of light pierced the darkness around her. She swung around only to be met by the sight of someone thrusting Ichigo into the room roughly.

"You can act stubborn all you like, little kitten, but we will get the information out of you."

Cherry crawled over as the cloaked woman shut the door. She helped Ichigo up from the floor gingerly and walked her over to the cot.

"Kind of dark in here isn't it" she murmured as Ichigo sat down. Ichigo laughed quietly.

"Don't worry, you get used to it after a while. "

"What were they asking you about?" Cherry asked politely. Ichigo sighed.

"Oh, they're just trying to find out more about our project: don't worry" she added "I'll never tell them a thing."

Cherry stared wide-eyed into the darkness.

_Is she… not afraid? Is she willing to die in order to keep this secret safe? _

_**LO-SER**_

_Hey! No she isn't!_

_**Heh, and who are you to judge, miss-talks-to-voices-in--her-head-Cherry.**_

_La la la la la, __I'm__not__listening_

Without warning, the room lit up once more as the cloaked woman stepped in. She flicked on the light switch next to the door. Cherry was about to stand up when the woman appeared at her side in a flash.

"Hm, you don't seem like much: Surely sirs Shirogane and Keichiro could've done better."

Cherry ground her teeth, but said nothing as the woman laughed.

"AH well, I suppose you'll do: hand over your amulet."

Cherry gave a harsh, dry laugh "You think I'd hand it over to you, beotch?"

Suddenly, she felt a weight in the palm of her hand. Taking a quick peek, she recognized it immediately as one of the mew mew amulets. Smirking, she stood up and stared into the woman's toneless eyes.

"You want a mew mew: I'll give you a mew mew! Mew mew Cherry, metamorpho-sis!"

Ribbons twirled around her body as the outfit returned. The red outfit slid on gracefully and the frills popped out the bottom. Her boots glided on as her tail popped out along with her white ears. The red fingerless gloves swept on as her hands twirled around each other. The ribbon twirled up her hair, forming a ribbon-encased side ponytail. The last thing to appear was a red and black chocker and the amulet attached to it.

"For trying to delve into our secrets, I'll give you an extra whooping, kwee!"

The woman growled as Cherry stood valiantly in front of Ichigo.

"I don't know how you did that, but you won't be able to defeat me: Kishu, Pai Taruto attack her!"

The three aliens popped into view just as Cherry leapt into the air.

"You again!" she screamed as their weapons appeared.

"Hello, little mousey!" Taruto laughed as he zoomed towards her. Cherry leapt out of the way and yelled.

"Ribbon cherry sphere!"

In her hand appeared a red ball, swirled with black.

"Ribbon Cherry cyclone!"

Kishu stopped in surprise only to be hit by the cyclone of fire and ribbon. He put his finger up to his cheek to feel the blood running down from a deep cut on his cheek.

"You'll pay for that, you little-"

"Oh no I won't: just you come and get me, you little Brat boy!"

Kishu teleported, twin swords above his head, only to meet thin air. Cherry dodged, ducked and weaved expertly as they sought to harm the mouse. She bounded softly over to Ichigo, pulled her over her shoulder, and then leapt out the door, past the woman and the other two aliens, and away from the building. To her horror, it was an empty, purple waste land with chunks of land floating around aimlessly. Ichigo just whispered

"Use the whip: you should be able to get back to our dimension"

"Dimension?" Cherry asked, quite confused now. Ichigo nodded

"Yes, and I'm sure Shirogane can explain it better when we return. Just use Zakuro's whip, and hurry!"

Hearing the sounds of confusion behind her, Cherry yelled

"Ribbon Cherry spear!"

A red version of Zakuro's weapon spun into her hand and a red light-whip shot out the end, ripping a gaping hole in the air. Letting go of Ichigo, she prepared to leap through.

0oo0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Back at café mew, Ryou, Keichiro and the other four girls sat, completely exhausted, around the table in the basement. They seemed to have sat there for years, although they knew it was only a few hours.

"What're we going to do? If Cherry and Ichigo are in the hands of the aliens, we may never figure out where they are!"

Mint complained: Keichiro nodded.

"But we have to keep searching. Come on, let's get back out there"

The girls stood up and followed them upstairs and out back. Zakuro gave a wave of her hand.

"This is where she disappeared. Perhaps we should look around here"

The girls nodded and began crawling around, searching for any clue of where Cherry and (hopefully) Ichigo were.

"EEK!"

Everyone turned towards the source of the noise and ran. They looked up in some trees and saw…

"Cherry onee-san!"

"Ichigo!"

The two girls rubbed their bodies as they struggled to be free of the branches.

"H-hello guys" Cherry said, her eyes dizzy spirals. Pudding laughed as they began to climb down. Cherry outfit was slowly dissolving back to her maid uniform. Keichiro helped them down as the other girls crowded around them.

"We were so worried, Cherry" Lettuce said as she hugged their newest team member. Pudding jumped around Ichigo hugging and dancing in intervals.

"Yay, Ichigo and Cherry are back! Now we can go home!"

Cherry raised her eyebrows.

"Eh, you guys haven't even gone home yet?"

Lettuce laughed "Actually, it's already been two days. But yes, we've been staying here in hopes that you two would show up. It's a good thing we did too!"

Cherry wasn't listening, however: she' curled into a ball, her mind arguing again.

_**Look at you, little Miss Cherry: got them all worried, didn't you**_

_Shut up! The last person I need to hear from at the moment is you_

_**Heh, well, you have no choice, really**_

_Now now, let's leave her alone_

_**No…I don't feel like it. She needs to learn that she isn't the only one thinking here!**_

_Both of you JUST SHUT UP AND GO AWAY!_

Cherry looked up to see the other's looking at her in a strange way. She blushed.

"Eh heh, well, I have to go home now: bye!"

The remaining members of the Tokyo Mew mew sat there, astonished as Cherry scampered off.

"What's with her?" Ryou drawled as the girls sat there. Mint shrugged.

"Who knows: come on, let's go home"

Pudding and Lettuce ran inside with her while Zakuro and Ichigo stood with their creators. Ichigo stared out where Cherry had been a few minutes ago.

"Hey, Shirogane-san?"

"hm…"

"How was Cherry able to use her powers, when we were back in the other dimension? The woman said that it was Mew-proof"

Ryou scratched his chin thoughtfully.

"I don't know…she's better than the rest of you, but she's still a mew…"

Zakuro provided the answer "Perhaps that's not all…we barely know anything about this girl: there could be something…"

Keiichiro nodded "Excellent point, Zakuro chan. I'll look into it later…for now, I suggest you two head home."

The two girls nodded, but Ichigo still wondered:

_Who is this new Mew?_

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

A/N: Hello! Long chapter, finally! Please read and review!

Anime-Kunoichi: once again, thank you! Here's the update!

Ashes are always ashes: Thank you too! I love you all!

( not…in…that…way…perverts…)

Danny Messer is in my closet: oh, thank you!

And now, I say good bye: for now! Bwahahahahahaha!

Kkira-chan -


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Hi! Update time!

Recapee: Zakuro provided the answer "Perhaps that's not all…we barely know anything about this girl: there could be something…"

Keiichiro nodded "Excellent point, Zakuro chan. I'll look into it later…for now, I suggest you two head home."

The two girls nodded, but Ichigo still wondered:

_Who is this new Mew?_

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Cherry ran all the way home, no matter how out of breath she got. She had to get home before she caused any more trouble: after being missing for two days, her grandma was probably hysterical. And when Geryl Sakuranbo was hysterical, you knew she was going to something about what had happened, whatever it was. In fact, there were probably about the entire city on watch for her as she ran.

"Miss Cherry: there you are! Thank goodness!"

She turned to see one of her grandmother's many maids sprinting towards her, waving her hands energetically. Cherry's mind drifted: the outfit reminded her of her job, of the café. She shook her head

_**Stupid Cherry: you know you can't go back there**_

_Shut up: I thought I told you to go away!_

_Wish we could, love, but we can't: we're just voices in your head._

_**Yup, sucks to be you**_

_Well, just shut up, then: I believe I can think for myself!_

If either of the voices had anything to say, she didn't hear them: the maid had reached her. She bowed, mopping her forehead

"Thank goodness you're safe, Miss: Madame Geryl was getting worried."

Cherry gave the hapless young woman a disarming smile.

"Don't worry: I'm back now. Come on, let's go"

The maid bowed again and then followed Cherry slowly as they walked the rest of the way. The maid was silent almost the entire way, until they were in sight of the house.

"Oh yeah, your father's been calling too!"

Cherry stopped short, her heart dropping into her stomach

"H-he's not too worried is he? I mean, h-he isn't going to be trying to come here will he?"

The maid blushed, and then tried hiding her face.

"Actually, Madame Geryl had him agree to let her pay to have him fly over. He should be arriving any time now"

Cherry crumpled to the ground.

_Here I go again: having people doing stuff just because of me_

_It's not your fault, Cherry-san: it's those aliens you need to blame_

Cherry laughed grimly, causing the maid to give her a rather confused look. She shook her head as tears leaked out of her eyes as she levered herself up, brushing herself off.

"Come on: I'm sure Grams wouldn't approve of us dawdling like this."

The maid, still confused, just bowed and led her the last few-hundred feet to the mansion

0oo0o0o0o0o00o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"So they escaped?"

Kishu had no choice but to nod

"Yes, deep blue-sama: but not for lack of tryi-"

"But yet they got away" Deep Blue interrupted the green-haired alien abruptly. Once again, Kishu had to reply

"Yes"

Deep Blue scowled

"My client isn't very pleased with you, Kishu. But yet, she is giving you one more chance to redeem yourself"

Kishu bowed down lower "Thank you, deep blue-sama: I will not disappoint you again"

Deep blue chuckled grimly "It is in your hopes that you do: go!"

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The moment Cherry walked through the door, she was buffeted right out by a ball of Brilliant red hair and brown.

"Cherry! I'm so glad you're safe!"

She struggled to pull herself out of her father's bear hug, but to no avail. Smirking, she resigned herself to hugging him back.

"Hey, dad"

Her grandmother was also there, standing off to the side with her arms crossed.

"Cheryl, I would've expected you to call if you were staying over somewhere: you had us worried sick! Oh, and I don't know how many times some girls kept popping up at the doorstep looking."

Cherry just nodded, not having the strength to argue with her grandmother. She gave her father one last, quick hug before preparing to run upstairs. However, her grandmother stopped her by pulling on her dress.

"Wait, Cheryl, I wasn't done yet: Your old friend, Yuku or something like that came looking too. He told you to call him. You have a new cellular phone already programmed by your bed, with his number in it."

Were Cherry some normal 16 year old girl, she probably would've ran over, hugged her grandmother, squealing in a high pitched voice. Cherry, however, just nodded again and proceeded up the stairs. She opened the door, exhausted, and flumped onto the bed:

Or, she would've, had someone not already been floating about an inch or so above the mattress.

"Kishu…"

He gave her his customary smirk

"Hello!"

She growled.

"What do you think you're doing here?"

"Oh, just preparing to cause a little mayhem and destruction: the usual." He pulled a glowing, octopus looking thing out of his pocket. He reached his hand into his other pocket and pulled out another glowing objet, this one an orb. Chuckling wickedly, he held both above his head and yelled

"FUSION!"

Cherry gasped as what looked like an old drunk weasel popped out of nowhere. She scowled as she said "You're going to have to do better than that if you want to defeat me, Kishu. Mew mew Cherry, metamorpho-sis!"

Once again, she transformed, her heeled boots clacking against the windowsill she leapt onto.

"For stealing a helpless soul, I'll kick your ass, kwee!"

Kishu just shrugged and, with a faint pop, teleported. Cherry held her hand out

"Ribbon Cherry sphere!"

The black and red sphere appeared in her hand once more as she sought to attack the chimera animal. She leapt around nimbly, dodging its feeble attacks.

"Ribbon Cherry Cyclone!"

Her ribbon and fire tornado sped off towards the chimera, but it dodged it easily.

"Heh, wow, this one's better than I thought."

She turned around quickly to see Kishu lounging in midair right in front of her nose. She growled.

"Get yourself and your damn smirk out of my room now, or I swear, you'll hurt so much you'll be cryin' for 50 years."

Kishu just winked at her but as he came in for a kiss, she smacked him: hard. Rubbing his face, he teleported away. Cherry suddenly felt herself lifted off her feet and staring into the eyes of the Chimera animal.

"Oh right, forgot about you"

The animal just snorted in a way that made Cherry realize something.

"Dad? Oh no, he wouldn't: I'm going to kill that damn alien if he did."

Cherry pulled her arms out successfully and aimed again. But just as she was about to speak, the chimera began to bang her around like some rag doll. She struggled against the awesome force but, as she was already tired from her before butt-whupping, it didn't budge one bit. She groaned but, before the chimera could sweep in for the final blow, there was a pop of someone teleporting. She turned around best she could to catch a glimpse…

0o0o0o0o0o0

A/N: Hello! It's short, wah. Imsorryimsorryimsorrry! But it's 11 pm and I have to get up at 4 to get oon a plane 4 DC until sat.

It would also make me extremely happy if, when I went on on sat, if I saw, lo and behold, 10 reviews!

Plz make it happen!

So, once again, sorry!

Kira-chan-


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Hello, I'm back! I am a bit upset at the meager amount of reviews I received, but oh well. I will just say that I hope that I get more from this chapter: I really like to know how I'm doing!

Alrighty, here we go!

Recap: She groaned but, before the chimera could sweep in for the final blow, there was a pop of someone teleporting. She turned around best she could to catch a glimpse…

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Ichigo got home, only to hear her mother calling

"Phone call!"

She ran in, grabbing the phone ion her mother's hands.

"Hello?"

"Momomiya-san? Are you at home?"

"Akasaka-san? What's wrong: did something happen?"

He sighed "Yes: sorry to call you back so quickly, but Cherry's in trouble. Again"

Ichigo groaned

"What now?"

She heard some keys tapping, then silence

"Well, I'm actually not quite sure. I mean, I see a chimera animal in her house, but there's something else…I don't recognize the signal…"

Ichigo sighed, but replied "I'm on my way: I'll ge3t the others. Bye"

"Goodbye, Momomiya-san, and be careful about this new arrival!"

She hung up, with only a few words of explanation to her mother, she raced out the door

.0o0o0o0o000o0o0o0o0o0

Meanwhile, Cherry struggled uselessly in the paws of the chimera animal. Even her hands were caught in the weasels' grasp. With her hands trapped all, of her weapons were useless. She growled at the cloaked woman in front of her.

"What're you doing here, you…"

She stopped slowly as the woman laughed. It sounded suddenly familiar to Cherry.

_Great, first the fact that this thing is my father, and now her…_

"Ribbon strawberry check!"

Cherry turned in surprise to see the silhouettes of the other five mew mews in her window. Ichigo stood out in front, her strawberry bell in hand. She growled at the woman

"You again"

The woman turned towards Ichigo, in time for Cherry to free one of her hands.

"Ribbon Cherry Kerchiefs!"

A pair of kerchiefs, one red, one black, appeared in her hands. She grinned at the woman as she freed herb other hand.

"You forgot one thing, Ma'am: I'm the strongest one of them all. Ribbon Cherry wave!"

A wave of air and ribbon shot out of her kerchiefs, buffeting the woman out of the air and knocking of her hood. Cherry didn't have time to look, though, as the weasel resumed banging her against the walls. Dizzy and in pain, Cherry slumped over. Faintly, she heard

"Ribbon Zakuro Spear!"

She felt herself falling to the ground as the weasel shrieked in pain. Lettuce and Pudding ran over as she struggled to stand up. When she looked at the woman, she noticed that she'd pulled her hood back up. She pointed a red fingernail at Cherry.

"You may've gotten me this time, Mew Cherry, but now I know your weakness. I will return, and next time: I will win!"

Cherry just stuck her tongue out insolently.

"Go suck your head, biotch."

The woman teleported away and Zakuro helped her over to the green-covered bed. She nodded her thanks, but the others had something else on her mind…

"Look out, pudding-chan!"

They dodged and weaved as the weasel lumbered after her. Suddenly, Cherry saw an opening. Grinning, she stuck her hand out again, saying

"Ribbon Cherry 'tanets!"

She pointed her red and black version of Letuce's weapon at the Weasel. She aimed for it's overlarge belly, screaming

"Ribbon Cherry Rush!"

The weasel lit up with brilliant light as it split back into the red orb and octopus thing. Suddenly, r2005, her little mouse, leapt out of her bag and swallowed the octopus.

The others gaped at her in awe.

"Yay, one-sama is all powerful!" Pudding shrieked, dancing around her. Cherry, however, at silently, with the little red orb cupped in her shaking hands. Her voice, when she spoke, shook as well

"Let's go find the person this soul belongs to."

The others knew there was something she wasn't letting onto, but followed her nonetheless. She crept along the hallway, feeling ridiculous in her frilly outfit, but at least it hid her identity, if only the slightest bit. Her hair was a bright, watermelon red and her eyes matched it. She heard the others behind her, but didn't seem to care. Suddenly, a squeak of dismay crept out of her throat as she saw a figure, crumpled on the ground. Before the others could even make a move, she darted over only as a mouse could. She knelt beside the figure, which the other's guessed must've been her father: they looked almost exactly alike. Although as a mew, her two front teeth were more oversized, and her eyes rounder, they still seemed almost carbon copies of each other. Ichigo crept over and knelt beside the sobbing girl.

"Cherry?"

Cherry didn't look up or speak, but she nodded her head. Ichigo smiled

"It's not over, Cherry: all you have to do is give him his soul back. Just hold it out in front of you and then let the soul do the rest."

Cherry nodded again and did as instructed: holding her hands out, she waited patiently. Finally, the light in the orb shone brighter and then, as if by some strange magic, absorbed itself back into her father's body. The blueness disappeared as he began to wake up. Cherry suddenly realized that he was going to see her, but not really see HER: he would see mew Cherry. Quickly, before his eyes could open, she transformed back into her maid outfit (which she still hadn't taken off). Her father's Chocolate eyes opened slowly as he tried to make out the face of the person hovering over him.

"Ch-cherry?"

The figure nodded as he struggled to sit up. However, she just pushed him back down.

"Just rest, dad: I'll explain everything later"

He stared at her, confusion written across his face.

"What do you mean, explain?"

"Urm, well, I'll explain that later too!"

He shook his head, then stopped as he noticed the five mews at the top of the stairs.

"Who're they, Cherry? Have I seen them before?"

Laughing nervously, Cherry shook her head

"No, um, nope, haven't seen them."

Behind her back, she gestured for the other mews to leave before her father got a good enough look at them. Laughing nervously, she helped her father up unsteadily, as her grandmother raced down the stairs.

"Cherry, thank goodness you're all right! Did you see that intruder: he did something to your father! Thank goodness he seems all right now. If I ever see that green haired little snip again, why I'd…"

Cherry sighed, and suddenly felt a wave of dizziness sweep over her. One of the maids who'd ran on with her grandmother ran over and helped her back up. Cherry tried to nod her thanks, but her head felt heavy. Her father looked at her, concerned.

"Cherry, are you alright? Poor girl: she looks like she hasn't got any sleep in days."

_All too right…_

_**Your own fault: if you'd just quit being a mew when you had a chance, you'd be all snug and happy in your bed right now!**_

_Let's just leave her alone: as much fun as it is to torture her…_

_**Pft, whetevs: go to sleep then, baby cakes**_

…

The maid swept Cherry up at her grandma's command and carried her upstairs. Cherry was fast asleep seconds after she was tucked in…

0o0o0ooo0o0o0o0o0

_**Bee boop boop bee boop boop**_

Cherry was jerked awake from the beeping sound on her side table. One glance and she recognized it as the cell phone her grandmother'd given her. She flipped it open.

" 'lo?" she mumbled into the sleek black phone. A voice that she barely recognized blared out of it so loudly she had to hold it two feet away from her ear.

"CHERRY, IS THAT REALLY YOU? OH, THANK GOODNESS YOU'RE OKAY: GERYL-SAN TOLD ME YOU WERE MISSING, AND, AND-"

"Hello to you too, Yuki" she chuckled, pushing herself up into a more comfortable position. The voice on the other end sighed, but then laughed itself.

"Hey, Cherry: how come I haven't seen you yet?"

"Well, the whole going missing thing had a big part in it. Oh yeah, and I bet we aren't even at the same school: I'm at **keikoku gakuen** "

"Me too! I guess it's just the new at school thing, where you run around in a hurry trying to find things, and crap like that"

Cherry chuckled "Guess so: hey, does Kurumi **Kaonajimigo there too? You know: we used to be friends before I left?"**

**"Oh, yeah, she goes there too: we're still friends."**

**"Good to know" she said sarcastically, like she hadn't already told her this a thousand times. "Hey, what day is it? My brain's a bit screwed up from all this junk" **

"Um, Tuesday"

Cherry nearly dropped the phone "What?! That means, I've been sleeping for" she counted on the calendar "two days! And I missed even more school!"

Yuki laughed "Well, don't worry: it's only 7:30, you can actually make it today if you hurry"

Cherry sighed in relief "Thanks: see you there!"

She shut the phone and flung herself out of bed. However, she barely caught herself as her slight jump carried her halfway across the room.

"This whole mew mew thing sucks: I can't even control my powers! And I hear everything, jump too far, run too fast: this sucks!" Cherry ranted to nobody. She stormed off into the bathroom, slamming the door.

00o0o0o0o

Downstairs, her father sat up in his chair, grinning

"Ah, I believe she's awake now"

Geryl rolled her eyes "Took her long enough: that girl sleeps like a rock!"

Mr. Sakuranbo grinned as the rushed Cherry sprang down the steps lightly, pulling her brown shoes on at the same time. Her hair was straitened in two ponytails, their length reaching to her hips. Even in the black and white uniform, she was dazzling.

"'morning dad, grams"

Her father smiled and waved

"Hey, girlie: wow, you look gorgeous"  
"Really? I just got ready five minutes ago. Well, guess I'll see you later!"

Her father sighed as she ran helter-skelter out the door

"I'm glad she's back up and about, mom: sometimes I get worried about her, that she'd end up like her mother…"

Geryl grasped the arms of her chair so hard her knuckles turned white "Don't even think that, Natsu : Cherry doesn't even seem to remember about that, and as long as she doesn't, she'll be fine."

He didn't look up, but said "But the problem is, I think she's here, mom"

"What? But, Natsu, that's impossible! She was locked away by the queen, and you know that it was made impossible to escape!"

Natsu (aka Mr Sakuranbo) shook his head "I don't understand it either, but I know she's out there, mom."

"We'll just have to watch her, Natsu: it's all we can do for now…"

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o00o00o0o0o0

At school, Cherry had trouble focusing on anything: back in America, she'd already learned all this stuff anyways. And there's only so much variation algebra could have, even across the seas. Instead of listening, she spent the entire hour texting Yuki under her desk.

**Hey Yuki, what teacher do you have right now?**

Miss Kamiri, you?

**Mrs Tamashi, and the Algebra lesson of doom**

Nice, Cherry. Oh, time for the next teacher: Bye!

**Bye…**

Cherry sighed as she wrote down the assignment after the teacher left. But just as the teacher was about to walk in, an announcement rang through the school.

"All student, please go to a closed area. Teachers, secure your area?: this is not a drill. Someone in a suspicious cloak has entered the building, searching for someone. Please, secure yourselves but stay calm"

Cherry gasped and, flinging her bag over her shoulder, ran out of the room after the others. But before anyone could move any further, a sweet smell filled the air and everyone began to collapse. Cherry followed her instincts and covered her mouth, and then decided it was about time to deal with this woman once and for all.

"Mew mew Cherry, Metamorpho-sis!"

She twirled into her red and black outfit and then, still covering her mouth and nose ran through the hallways full of unconscious people. At the end of one, she almost ran into someone, but recognizing it as Mint, she just gestured with her free hand. Mint nodded and followed her through the hallways. Somehow, Cherry felt like she was sensing the woman, although she couldn't see her. They ran outside, where they could finally uncover their faces. Gulping in large breaths of air, they looked around.

"I don't see anyone" Mint gasped as Cherry stood up straight. Suddenly, her hand shot towards the roof.

"There she is!"

Mint stood up and then prepared to leap

"Let's go then"

"No, wait" Cherry said, but Mint had already jumped. But she was flung back by something, as the woman swished her hand. Cherry growled as Mint hit the ground.

"You'll pay for this, you little…"

"Oh, but don't you recognize me, my little Cherry Blossom? I'd thought by now…Oh well, I guess I'll just show you now…"

Cherry gasped as the woman pulled her hood away from her face.

"No…" She sobbed "it can't be…"

The woman just sat there and laughed at the pitiful girl beneath her.

"Die" she screeched, pointing two fingers at Cherry and sending a bolt of red light towards her. Cherry had no time to scream as the bolt hit her…

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

A/N: Bwa fa fa, cliffy! I finally can tell everyone the woman's identity now, and the secret about Chewrry too! Yay!

kuromiyuki GKL: I know, it seems to go so fast!

Yes, Cherry's voices rule: that's why I put them in there!

Danny Messer is in my closet: Nyua, thank you so much! I don't usually get reviews like this anymore!

Oh, and here's what all the s tarred words mean!

**keikoku gakuen(her school): literally, pretty academy (I was bored)**

**Kaonajimi( Kurumi's last name): friend**

Sakuranbo(Cherry's last name): Cherry(I was going to use it for her name, but it worked better as a last name)

Natsu(Cherry's dad): summer

Well, bye!


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: I back! I've decided that, since some people already know who the person is, to go ahead and tell everyone! Here's chapter 9!

00oo0o0o0o00o00o0o0o00

Cherry stopped, although really all she felt like doing was throwing up at the moment.  
"no…" she kept on repeating "no, no, no…"

The woman laughed, her red eyes twinkling "So, Cherry, do you recognize me now?"

Cherry legs shook so much that she dropped to the ground. Mint just stared from the woman, to Cherry, and back to the woman. She gasped

"Cherry, is she your…"

"Mother…" Cherry whispered "She's my mother…"

The woman put on a sly grin "Oh good, so my little baby finally guessed it. I suppose your 'dear' father is still around? And that prat of a grandmother?"

Cherry growled and leapt at her mother unexpectedly. She was halted by jets of rope that shot out of her mother's fingers. Her mother laughed again "But, Cherry, you don't even know why I'm here: don't you want to join your mommy? Leave those sissy mews behind you. Fight on the winning side for once!"

Cherry struggled as the ropes began to coil tighter. However, her response was certain and un-wielding "Never, you Bitch"

Her mother laughed again "Oh, temper, temper honey: do you want me to ground you to hell?"

Mint gasped, but did what her instincts told her

"Ribbon min-"

She stopped dead as Cherry's mother swung Cherry so that she was dead center

"Try firing now, little mew"

Mint growled, but lowered her weapon anyways. She glared up at the woman, looked sadly at Cherry, and then fled.

_I'm sorry, Cherry, but don't worry: I'll get the others! _

_O00oo0o0o00o0o0o00o0o00_

Keichiro and Ryou sat with their eyes glued to the screen, talking in hushed voices as the other four mews arrived.

"You called us down here, Shirogane-san?" Ichigo said, and the blond man nodded.

"Look at this screen: what do you see?"

"Um, a bunch of dots on a map?" Lettuce guessed, and he laughed "Close enough: actually, it's a map showing any supernatural beings in the area. However, the red one there" he pointed to one of two dots by a school "is one we've never seen before. But, we fear, Cherry is encountering at this moment."

They didn't know what to say as they stared at the screen "But what does that mean, Shirogane-san?"

He shook his head "I don't know, but you guys are about to-"

He was cut off as Mint banged into the basement, gasping for breath, as a mew mew

"Mint! What happened?!"

"Cherry…mother..attacked…school…." She managed to gasp out. Keichiro ran over with a tall glass of water.

"Here drink this: you'll need to go back, find out what this new enemy is. Can you do that?"

She nodded, as did the others.

"Don't worry, we'll save Cherry! Mew mew Strawberry!"

"mew mew Zakuro!"

"Mew mew pudding!"

"Mew mew Lettuce!"

"Metamorpo-sis!"

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0oo0o0

Cherry, meanwhile, had a few problems of her own. Her mother laughed as she struggled to free herself, causing the bonds only to go even tighter.

" You may as well just give up now, Cherry Berry: either way, you will join me."

"Ne-never" Cherry gasped, but she knew it was hopeless. And god, did she hate that nickname.

_Why doesn't she just get rid of me already?_

_**Maybe she finds you interesting…you know, like a playtoy…**_

_Well, I don't!_

Her mother chuckled, her eyes shimmering

"Well, if you won't cooperate, we'll just have to do it the fun way. Come here, my pet" she called, and Cherry could only watch as someone with brown eyes and hair stepped out onto the roof beside her mother. She felt tears brim in her eyes…

"Yuki…" she sobbed, as the boy looked up. His eyes had become toneless, but she knew he had to be her best friend…

"You wouldn't…" she said, as her mother gestured him forward

"You don't do as I say, Cherry, Mr. Yuki here goes whoosh, of the building. Now, have you reconsidered my deal? "

Cherry didn't take her eyes off Yuki as she nodded. Her mother laughed again "Good, now just come down here so I can erase your memory"

"Erase my memory? Why?"

Her mother rolled her eyes "I know you wouldn't fight against them with your entire strength if you remember: now come on, my little half-demon"

"Demon, is that what I am?"

"Yes" her mother said silkily "It's what we both are: although, thanks to your father, you're only half demon…Now come on, we don't have much time to do this"

Her mother placed a hand over Cherry's heart, and muttered some words Cherry didn't know. In a flash of light, Cherry's mew outfit changed to a lime green, and her eyes were now flecked with green and black. Her ears turned black, and her hair was now flowing straight and free down her back. It was striped with black and the same green as everything else.

"So, mother, when do we begin destroying those pitiful mews?"

0o0ooo0o0o0o0o0o0o0o00

Mint led the others swiftly back to the school, but the roof where the Demon woman had been standing on before looked deserted, except for a brown haired boy Mint recognized as the school president

"Yuki-kun!"

The boy looked up, his eyes distant, but fear-filled. Without warning, he tipped over the edge of the building. Mint gasped and sprinted forwards towards the falling boy. Thankfully, she grabbed him about four feet from the grass, but he was unconscious. She laid him out behind the grass. She then, after leaving Lettuce to care for the boy, raced back to the building. But now, on the roof, stood two figures: one, the cloaked woman and the other…looked like Cherry, but was all green, and everything was different…her eyes, her hair…even her ears!

"Cherry?" she called and the girl looked down. However, there was no recognition, no friendliness in her gaze. Mint cringed backwards.

"What have you done to her?" she yelled at the woman, who just snickered

"She's just returned home, to live with her mother" the woman replied, as all the mews gasped

"No…"

Cherry one-san…"

"How could this be…"

Cherry laughed, but it wasn't at all like her normal laugh in any way.

"Oh, shut your mouth, you whining slut"

Her mother nodded approvingly "seems like I did a pretty good job, didn't I? She doesn't seem to remember anything at all…"

This caused even more disturbance among the mews. Cherry didn't even seem to notice: instead, she just stuck out two of her fingers, pointing them at the four girls. Ropes, not unlike the ones her mother had used on her, bound the mew mews. They all gasped as she pulled them tighter

"You guys trying to play with me? I've never seen you before, and after this, I doubt I'll see you again: goodbye, mews!"

With that, Cherry screeched

"Demon Cherry sphere!"

"Say what?" Mint moaned "This can't be happening…"

They shrieked as the flames and green ribbon danced around them. However, Cherry's eyes seemed to flash red for a second as she whispered "I'm sorry"

But before they could really tell what was going on, both Cherry and her mother flew away. The flames disappeared, as did the ropes and ribbon. The mews fell to the ground in a heap, but pulled themselves up quickly.

"Where'd she go?" Zakuro muttered as she and the other mews walked back to where the boy lay. He'd woken up, but now his eyes were bright, and he seemed alright.

"What just happened? Was that girl…Cherry?"

Lettuce laughed nervously "No, of course not. Hey, are you hungry? I suggest you go to café mew: their food is delicious!"

The boy, Yuki, stared at them "Are you guys the mew mews?"

"Yup! Here to kick butt for the future of our planet!" Pudding cheered, trying to lighten up the heavy mood. Everyone laughed

"See you later, and be careful from now on: don't go falling off any more roofs!"

They left the boy sitting, confused in the grass.

_What on earth was that all about?_ He wondered

0oo0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0oo0

The mews were greeted back at the café (which had just been opened) by an anxious Ryou.

"Well?" he questioned, and Ichigo gasped out everything that had happened to them.

"…and now Cherry's had her memory erased: she doesn't remember any of us!"

They had moved down into the basement, with Lettuce and Zakuro watching over things upstairs. Akasaka sighed

"SO that's why she was able to use her powers, back in that other dimension: she used mostly her demon powers, and obviously the place hadn't been made demon proof. But now it's too late: Cherry is now a demon, fighting against us. Of course, her mother knew that if she used Cherry, you guys wouldn't be able to fight against her. I just can't believe she'd use her own daughter like this…"

"Pudding neither…" Pudding whimpered "poor Cherry one-san"

Ryou stood up, his face emotionless; but his eyes revealed that he was in emotional pain.

"Well, we'll just have to get her back…I can't believe we let this happen"

"It…it's not your fault, Shirogane-san" Ichigo said kindly "it would've happened anyways, not just because she was a mew"

"Yes, but…she wouldn't be in this situation, if I hadn't done it…"

"Stop your whining, Shirogane"

The blond turned around just as Cherry and her mother appeared in the air. The Demon laughed, her Green hair flowing down her back.

"Ryou, it's been too long: and look, it's the mews again. Well, Cherry, you know what to do!"

Cherry laughed in an un-natural way "Of course I do, mom: how can you doubt me? Demon Cherry sphere!"

Her ball, now with green in its swirls, appeared in her hand. She pointed it at the mews and the two men.

"Demon Cherry Cyclone!"

"No! Cherry, stop it!" Ryou shouted over the roar of the flames, not expecting it to do any good. But, for a moment, Cherry paused, and a single tear fell down her cheek. Her mother scowled

"Cherry, what do you think you're doing: attack them!"

But Cherry just shook her head "I think they've had enough today, mother: let's go back"

Her mother shrugged, but teleported away. Cherry looked back one last time at the mews before following suit…

0o0o0o000o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o00

A/N: Hello! Thanks for still reading! Arigato, arigato, arigato!

kuromiyuki GKL:yes, she is you! I'm so gald I made your day like that!

Oh, and (not to make you sound stupid or anything, but just fyi) Yuki is actually a guy.

Sorry for the confusion!

MewMewPebble: 1. Thank you! I do agree with you about Bloodfat: after awhile, I just realy feel like…

Ahem, well, you get the point…

2. Thank you! Arigato! I didn't want to use a cliché animal because, well, they're just so…well, cliché!

Well, adios…for now!

Remember to review!

Kira-chan --


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Yay! Finally, all the way to chapter 10!

Recap: "No! Cherry, stop it!" Ryou shouted over the roar of the flames, not expecting it to do any good. But, for a moment, Cherry paused, and a single tear fell down her cheek. Her mother scowled

"Cherry, what do you think you're doing: attack them!"

But Cherry just shook her head "I think they've had enough today, mother: let's go back"

Her mother shrugged, but teleported away. Cherry looked back one last time at the mews before following suit…

0o0o0o00o0o0o0o0o0

"Cherry, why didn't you kill them?" Her mother scolded. Cherry didn't reply, but sat on the windowsill, looking out into the void that was now her home.

"Cherry, listen to me!"

Cherry looked up at her mother, her eyes glistening with tears

"Mom, why are we doing this? Why do I feel like I'm doing something…criminal?"

Her mother, Akuma, sighed "Cherry, let's face it: they're trying to so called 'save' the earth, but really, in truth, they're actually destroying it. Also, they're trying to get rid of the aliens, who are just trying to protect the earth by destroying the Mews"

Cherry hung her head "But it just doesn't seem right, mom: I mean, they don't seem bad. And why do they act like they know me: I don't remember ever seeing them…"

Akuma twitched but then just laughed it off

"Hm, those silly girls: they just don't want you to attack them, Cherry. So don't worry about it, all right?" she waited until Cherry nodded slowly to continue "good, good: we'll attack them again tomorrow. For now, go to bed, get some rest…"

Cherry didn't say anything, but nodded and curled up closer to the window.

I _wish I knew why I can't remember anything…_

_**Pfft, who needs to remember that crap: right now, let's sleep so we can kick some mew mew butt!**_

_Well…._

It seemed as though Cherry was forgetting something, that there was something missing…

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The others were still at the café, putting the basement back in order. Lettuce and Zakuro had run down just in time to put out the flames and cut the mews loose. They were told the story as they contiueed to pick up by Ryou.

"…and so, Cherry is in the hands of her mother, Azuma Yokoshima. But every now and then, thanks to her being only half demon, the human part of her breaks through her mother's spell. So, all we need to do is to find a way to get her to break through all together"

"But how?" Lettuce asked timidly. Ryou shrugged

"That's the problem: I don't think anything could jolt her enough for her to break through. Is there someon-"

"Hello? Anyone here?"

Everyone's heads swiveled to the stairs, where a voice floated down from the café's main dining room. Mint recognized the voice immediately.

"President Yuki-san! One moment!"

"Eh, The same one from your school?" Ryou asked, and Mint nodded furiously.

"I hope he isn't here about Cherry: what will we tell him. 'Oh yeah, Mr. Yuki? Your best friend is now a demon, ready to kill anyone on command.' Oh yeah, that's real pleasant" Mint snorted as they walked slowly up the stairs. They were greeted by Yuki, but behind him was a girl. She had Brown hair and brown eyes. She stared at them with wide, frightened eyes but Yuki wasn't afraid: instead, he walked right over to Ryou,, his Brown eyes blazing.

"I know what happened: I know what Cherry is."

"Oh, do you now?" Ryou spoke calmly, but his eyes showed his fear. The Brown haired boy was tall, and he looked strong enough to beat the crap out of anyone who annoyed him. Mint stepped in between them.

"Yuki, what do you mean? Cherry's just…not here at the moment"

"Or at home, or at school, or anywhere: where is she? I know what she is: she 's a mew mew."

Everyone exchanged frightened glances at each other and the girl behind him squeaked.

"W-what do you mean?" she said hesitantly "I saw Cherry earlier, and she didn't look like a mew"

Yuki shook his head "I wouldn't have believed it either, had I not seen her transform from the rooftop. Her mother thought she had full control of me, but I saw and heard everything. I saw her become a mew mew, and I saw her mother transform her to demon. I was the only witness, and now" he paused, keeping his eyes to the floor "Now I want to help her. I'll do anything to save her, anything!"

Ryou stood, silent, as the boy in front of him as he finished. He then stepped forward.

"Yuki, what makes you think that you can save her? We've all tried, but no one can seem to get through to her entirely.

"That's why Yuki-chan thought he'd be best!" The girl behind him said "He was her best friend since they were born: if anyone can help her, he can!"

Mint cocked her head "who're you?"

The girl stared at her "Um, I'm Kurumi Kaonajimi; I'm one of Cherry's friends from elementary school"

Ryou sighed, and stared at Yuki thoughtfully.

"Well, maybe I'll think of something you can do…but don't count on it" Ryou added, but Yuki smiled at him gratefully

"Thank you, Mr. Shirogane. Well, come on, Kurumi, let's-"

"How pathetic, Ryou: do you seriously think you can get my daughter to turn back just because of them?"

Cherry's Mother, Akuma, popped into view, this time alone. Yuki pushed Kurumi behind him protectively, but he seemed pretty scared himself. He growled

"Yes, we can: you can't keep her from remembering, you wait and see"

Akuma snorted "Even if she did start to remember, I'll just put an end to it my way. Can't go having my enemies have such a powerful opponent."

"You-you monster" Yuki gasped, knowing what she meant by "ending it her way", and not liking the idea at all. He clenched his fists tightly against his side. She laughed

"Demon actually, dear boy. Hm, you seem familiar: have I seen you before?"

He gave a short, dry laugh "I was the only one who witnessed what you did to your daughter: I'm the one you thought you had under control when you tried to shove me off the building."

"Ah, yes, now I remember: the boy Cherry loved"

Yuki scowled, and Kurumi and Mint had to hold him back before he leapt at her.

"Why are you doing this to her?! She doesn't want things like this; she never wanted to hurt anyone!"

"Ah, but she seemed alright when she was beating up demons. No" she laughed "I always knew she'd be like me. That's why I came back for her: I knew she'd eventually figure out herself. It was only a matter of time before she gave in to her instincts."

Ryou shoved everyone behind him and stood in front of them protectively.

"Akuma, what do you want with them: they never did anything to you"

"Oh, but have you told them what you did, Shirogane? What you did to me, how you got rid of me? How you concealed me from my own child, and then handed me over to the aliens in hopes they would kill me? Yes, kids, this man isn't as honorable as he seems, so I wouldn't trust him if I was you."

Ryou seemed to blush, but no one could see it as he faced forward again. He glared at her, his voice more of a scowl.

"Look, Akuma, it doesn't matter what I did 13 years ago: I did it to protect Cherry!"

"You didn't have to!" Akuma shrieked, and Ryou sat there, watching as the demon glared at him, ignoring the silent tears dripping down her face. She spoke, but this time she didn't sound evil: she sounded….like a normal woman.

"I had to watch Natsu move, and Cherry ask him every day what happened to me. He ignored her, acted like I never existed. He never told her what Iwas: he was too ashamed. So Cherry got to grow up normally, and I let her. But this-this was the final straw. To see her become a mew mew, to be on the opposite side: I had to do it! And you know what: I don't care!"

There were no more tears on her face, and her eyes were angry again. She had turned back again. She looked at them one last time before she popped away. The mews were speechless as they stared at Ryou. He didn't look back, but said

"You better get home now, girls, and you too, Yuki. Come back tomorrow, all of you"

Ichigo put a hand out towards him "Shirogane…"

He shook it off "I'm fine: just get home now"

They looked at one another, but nodded and headed upstairs to get dressed and go home. Yuki, however, stayed behind

"Mr. Shirogane?"

"What?" he snapped, but then looked at Yuki's hurt face "Sorry"

"It's okay: I just wanted to ask you something"

"Hm…"

"Um, what exactly happened? About what Mrs. Sakuranbo was saying?"

Ryou didn't answer for a minute, but then sighed.

"Sit"

Yuki nodded, and sat in one of the only chairs that hadn't been destroyed. Ryou sat in another one opposite and folded his hands in his lap. His head was bent, but he began to speak.

"I was younger, and I guess a little hot headed. I just-I thought, when I saw what she really was, that I could help that little girl. She was only three, so she obviously understood what was going on, but her father did. I told him that he had to get out of here, that I'd find a way to get rid of her. He just nodded, and thanked me. "

Ryou shook his head slowly

"I was such an idiot: how could I think that it would help? But then I met the aliens: I don't remember how well enough…"

Yuki knew that he wasn't telling the exact truth, but he realized that it was maybe that something had happened when he found them. He motioned for Ryou to continue

"Well, after that I nearly forgot about them due to some…family difficulties, so I had to continue the mew project. But then, a month later, the father returned to me. He said that…His wife had left, and taken the daughter with her. I, of course, went immediately searching for her. I took Keichiro with me, and we went out looking for the woman. She'd taken Cherry to an airport, attempting to take her out of the country, to England. But I stopped her before she could even get there, and we took the girl. Cherry was scared, but I had Keichiro bring her back for me so I could deal with Akuma. I summoned the demons somehow and" he paused, putting his face in his hands "I let them take her. Cherry was screaming in the car, and Keichiro couldn't believe what I'd one. I couldn't either: I'd just taken a mother from a young girl. She would never know a mother's love, and it was entirely my fault. But I told myself, that it was what had to be done. She was a demon, Yuki, and I couldn't let her hurt Cherry"

Yuki let him stop for a moment before prompting him onward

"And…"

"And I guess I've felt protective of her ever since. But I was pretty sure that after handing Akuma over, that there would be no more problems. But Natsu insisted he move to America a few years later, taking Cherry with him. But over there, they were too poor: Cherry started working part time at fourteen to help her father. And all this time, I wished I could do something: but I couldn't, I can't still."

Yuki noticed that Ryou was crying into his hands. He put a hand on his back, in a manly fashion.

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Shirogane: I never knew. Cherry didn't remember anything when I met her, a year before she left. I mean, she told me about them being poor, but nothing about what happened to her mother. Like you said, her father never told her."

Ryou just nodded and, a few minutes later, lifted his head up. His eyes were dry, and there was no hint he'd even been crying.

"Well, I guess you should go then. Come back tomorrow, and I'll tell you If I find out anything."

Yuki stood up, and prepared to leave, but Ryou stopped him

"Please don't mention…anything to the others, please? I just-"

Yuki nodded

"No problem, Mr. Shirogane. See you tomorrow."

"Yeah…"

0oo0o0o0o0o0o0o0o00o0o0o0o0o0

Mint sat, exhausted but unable to sleep, on her window ledge when she heard a pop behind her.

"Cherry…"

She looked normal, but Mint was still on her guard.

"Are you…alone?"

Cherry nodded, and she had tears in her eyes

"Mint, what's happening to me? I can't remember what I've been doing, and I think I'm doing something awful. Please, help me…"

Mint gasped

"Cherry, are you..?"

"Back? No, I don't think so…mom has too much of a hold. It's taking all I have to stay like this. If she found out…."

Suddenly, her body curled and she twitched in pain. Mint screeched

"Cherry, what's happening?"

"Mom…pulling…me…back…trans…forming…"

Mint stepped back in horror as Cherry slowly turned back green and disappeared. She put a hand over her thumping heart…

_What on earth was that?_

0o0o0o0o0oo0o0o0

A/N: HI! That was a weird ending, I guess…

Ah well, it's almost midnight…

Howleron: I did not! indignant face. I thought up mine first. And I hope this makes it clearer that mine's different…

kuromiyuki GKL:I know, Iknow, but I had to do it! I had to! Had to be a plot twist…or whatever…And there was Kurumi! She returns again next chapter as well!

Well, adios!

Kira-vampire-chan [


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: I'm back! Yay! Yay!

Recap: Suddenly, her body curled and she twitched in pain. Mint screeched

"Cherry, what's happening?"

"Mom…pulling…me…back…trans…forming…"

Mint stepped back in horror as Cherry slowly turned back green and disappeared. She put a hand over her thumping heart…

_What on earth was that?_

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The next day at school, it was insane. Everywhere, there were signs of heightened security since Cherry's mother had broken in, and everyone was gossiping in the halls.

"What happened?"

"I heard it was the mew mews"

"No way: they fight _against_ evil, remember?"

"Not what I saw: I saw a mew mew attacking the others."

"No way!"

"Never!"

Mint groaned as she walked through the halls of chattering students. Thankfully, no one still knew about her being a mew, but Cherry certainly looked suspicious: she hadn't come to school, but Mint remembered how Cherry had pulled herself out of it the other night, how her mother still pulled her back. She was about to walk into the classroom when she heard a voice from above her ear.

"Hey, Mint"

She turned around to see a pair of anxious brown eyes looking into hers.

"Yuki…"

He nodded "Any news from Cherry?"

Mint thought about telling him about the visit the other night, but she realized that it would only hurt him more. She shook her head, and he sighed

"Ah well, we couldn't expect one night to make a difference."

Mint nodded, not looking into his eyes fearing he would see what she was hiding from him. But he sighed, and turned away.

"thanks: see you at the café, I guess."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Yuki-chan! Wait up!"

Yuki didn't have to turn around to know that it was Kurumi running up to him. He sighed

"Hey, Kimi"

She frowned "You look so sad, Yun-chan: you're acting like we can't help her"

Yuki didn't stop walking, but replied

"I don't think we can, Kimi."

She stared at him, and an ominous silence hung over them as they walked over to the café…

0o0oo0o0o0o0o00

Cherry's mother stood menacingly over Cherry, sneering.

"So, you thought you could break through, did you? Thought you could go back, get help?!"

Cherry covered her faces with her hands as her mother swung at her. She had tears in her green flecked eyes.

"Why not? I hate doing this! Why can't I get away!?"

Akuma screeched "Because You just can't, Cherry! You can't go back to them, ever!"

Cherry attempted to block her mother's onslaught, the voices in her head for once out of things to say.

0o0o0o0oo0

Ryou watched the seven people file into his office silently. They stared at the assortment of computers and screens, mostly blinking out messages or beeping rhythmically. He sat in a chair, and motioned the others to do likewise.

"Well, I think I've found out a way that Mr. Yuki and his little friend to help us after all. I've spent my time developing a new branch of the mew mew project. You, Mr. Yuki, will be the only mew that is a boy. Now, for your sake" headed, at the look of horror on Yuki's face "you don't have to wear a dress, and your amulet doesn't look so girly. Now, as for Miss. Kurumi, you will be an ordinary mew. Here's your amulet. You're the Black striped squirrel; your outfit will be brown and grey. Mr. Yuki, you will have the DNA of the orange breasted falcon. Now, I know this may not have been what you were expecting, but both Keichiro-san and I think this is the best way. You guys need to find her soon as possible, however, because Akuma warned me that if Cherry doesn't behave…well, you get the point. Go: Keichiro and I will watch over the café."

They nodded and transformed. Yuki's outfit, as promised, didn't look girly: it was a plain, almost t-shirt like top, orange, with the same colored shorts. He had brown combat boots and instead of puffy armbands, his were plain leather and his amulet didn't look the same. Instead of pink, it was red and gold. He had largish brown wings and a bit of a tail.

Kurumi, on the other hand, looked almost just like Ichigo. Her main outfit was brown but the bottom had triangle layers of grey, black, and white. Her boots were knee high brown combat boots, with a black and white stripe on the back. Her long brown hair was knotted up in a bun on the back of her head with grey, white, and brown ribbons dangling from it. Her brown eyes turned black, and short brown gloves with little layered triangle frills at the edge. A brown squirrel tail with a white and black stripe curled out along with a twitching pair of brown ears.

All of the other mews observed the newest member for a few seconds before nodding and the all ran off, to find Cherry…

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Cherry sat silently, swinging her legs on the top of a nearby building. Her mother left her alone for the time being, and she wanted to take the time to talk to the mew mews. She watched them run past, and she noticed immediately two new additions. They both looked familiar, but just like the others, she couldn't figure out who they were. Then she remembered the little voices in her head.

_Yo, little voices? _

_**AKA Your consciences…**_

_Yeah, whatever: Look, mind telling me who those new people are?_

_**Um, nope, don't recognize them at all, mm-hm…**_

_You're lying…_

_**I don't think Consciences can even lie, do you?**_

_Yes we can…._

_**SHUT UP!**_

_You guys are hopeless….._

Cherry sighed and leapt off the building in front of the six girls and boy.

"Yo, what're you guys doing?"

The new girl in brown nearly screamed, but instead the boy stepped in front of her. But, to her surprise, he smiled at her.

"Hey, Cherry"

She was surprised "You-you know who I am?"

He nodded "I'm your friend, Cherry. I did this for you... Please come back…"

She didn't answer, but she realized that he was Right. She had to go back to them…

_They were your friends, Cherry _

_Finally! Some answers out of one of you!_

_**Humph, SHE won't be happy about this…**_

_She doesn't have to know…just go with them Cherry… I promise, you'll be fine…as long as SHE never finds out…_

_She?_

_**Your mother…**_

Cherry gasped, and then turned away from the mews. They stared at her, not daring to say anything as she spoke.

"So, you think if I go back with you guys, you can protect me from my mother?"

Ichigo nodded "I'm sure Shirogane can figure something out. Please, Cherry, come back with us!"

Cherry didn't reply. Kurumi finally stepped forward.

"Cherry? Please, come back with us: we'll keep you away from her, she can't hurt you. Please…"

Cherry didn't have to reply to tell them she was going with them. Instead, all the green started to fade away, and her outfit was once again red. When she turned around, her eyes had turned back to their regular Mahogany. She smiled at them sadly.

"Hey guys…look, I'm really sor-"

But Cherry was cut off as Yuki rushed up and squeezed her in a big bear hug. She was startled for a moment but then hugged him back lightly.

"I'm so glad you're back, Cherry!" he said happily. She laughed softly

"Yeah, me too…"

Suddenly, Pudding began jumping around "Yeah, onee-sama's back!"

Everyone laughed playfully as they turned around towards the café. Cherry and Yuki walked together.

"So, first guy mew mew, are we?"

He blushed bright red "It was Mr. Shirogane's idea. I went along with it to help you. As long as I didn't have to wear a dress…"

Cherry smirked "Now THAT would've been a sight to see. Too bad…"

He scowled and faked a punch, which she easily dodged. He sighed.

"Cherry…"

"What? You're Mr. Macho Mew now, come and get me!"

"'Mr. Macho Mew'?! Oh, you're really gonna get it now!"

She giggled and ran off ahead. He chased after her with a convenient stick…Meanwhile, the others walked behind slowly, watching them as they chased each other down the block.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Shirogane-san!" Ichigo called when they got back to the café. He had his back to them, taking an order at a table. He spoke without turning around.

"I thought I told you not to come back unless you had Cherry?"

Cherry raised an eyebrow.

"Funny, I thought I was right here. Odd…"

He swung around

"Cherry? How did they-"

She shrugged "I guess I just came back by myself, mostly. Look, Shirogane-san, I'm really, really sorry…I don't think that will make up for everything, but truly, I am…"

Ryou shocked everyone by leaning forward and hugging Cherry.

"I'm just glad you're safe. Now we just have to keep it that way…"

He broke away, blushing furiously. Ichigo nodded

"Maybe she could stay here…you're protection enough, and one of us could try staying every night…."

"I'll stay"

Everyone turned to face Yuki, who hadn't spoken up until then. Ryou raised an eyebrow

"You don't have to do it all by yourself, you know…Other's could help too. And just how are you guys expecting to explain this to your parents?" he added, his old tone back.

"W-we could say that we're just having a sleep over…" Lettuce said, and Ichigo nodded. But Shirogane didn't agree

"And you think they won't be suspicious if it happens once a week? No, don't worry guys: We can handle it."

They all looked to Cherry, who was staring at the floor in embarrassment, the voices in her head for once silenced. She couldn't believe that they wanted to lie to their parents, to stay at the café over night, just for her. It was too much for her…

"I'll be fine at home, guys…really, I'm a mew mew: I can handle this kind of thing."

Mint snorted "Sure, just like you handled it before…"

Cherry shot her an evil death glare. "Before she threatened Yuki: I doubt she can do that again now that he's a mew…"

"But we can't be sure, Cherry" Shirogane pointed out "which is why you'd be safer here. Your father will understand, I'm sure…"

Cherry was about o ask something, but Yuki cut in "its fine, Mr. Shirogane: she can stay with me. Kurumi will come over too, and both of us should be enough."

Ryou thought for a moment, but sighed.

"Whatever, Yuki…but nothing better happen to her!" He warned

"Of course not, Mr. Shirogane" Yuki said nervously. The blond teenager sighed and just nodded.

"You two go home with her at the end of the day. For now, put on your uniforms and get to work…"

They all nodded and ran to the back room. Cherry still felt really uncomfortable, but the others noticed and backed off a little bit. Cherry was thankful for the little bit of respite she'd been granted: before, it was almost too much, with everyone jumping all over her, wanting to know if she'd truly come back. She was almost positive that her mother's hold on her had finally vanished, but she didn't dare to think of what would happen if it hadn't…

"Cherry onee-san! Hurry up and get ready!"

Puddings voice startled Cherry from her thoughts and she smiled at the peppy young girl.

"I'm coming…"

Kurumi grinned at her from the other side of the room.

"These outfits are so kawaii!"

Cherry nodded at her friend, very elegant in her brown and white maid uniform.

"Yeah, I guess…you guys go ahead, I'll be right behind you."

They nodded and walked out: except Zakuro.

"You don't have to blame yourself, you know"

Cherry didn't turn around behind the screen she was changing behind, but replied

"I don't know what you mean in the slightest, Zakuro. Now please, I'm getting dressed"

But Zakuro stayed put "Why do you think somehow it's your fault, Cherry? It's not your fault your mother was controlling you like that…"

"But it was my fault that I let myself get caught, Zakuro, and all I've done is create trouble for you all…"

Zakuro didn't reply for a few minutes as Cherry finished tying the bow on the back of her dress…

"But still, you had no control on what you were doing. You couldn't control yourself, Cherry…"

Cherry sighed, and pushed the screen back into the slot in the wall

"There's no way I can ever get over the fact that I tred to hurt you guys…I could've killed you…"

It took Zakuro a moment to realize Cherry was crying, the silent tears trickling down her cheeks. Zakuro felt the urge to hug the teenager, and she gave into it.

"It's all right, Cherry…"

0o0o0oo0o0o0o0o0

Cherry, finally ready to face the others, swiped a hand across her face and laughed.

"Well, I guess I'll get out there now. It must be really busy. Although, with two more, it won't be as hard…"

Zakuro smiled faintly at the brave girl…maybe she wasn't so bad after all….

Cherry walked out into the hallway only to bump into Ryou leaning against the doorway. She then turned a bright shade of red

"SH-shirogane! How long have you been standing there?"

He looked straight into her eyes, then turned away

"Not long…" he mumbled, but she knew he was lying: he'd heard everything…

"Look, Shirogane…."

He stopped her "Its fine, really Cherry…and…" he paused, sighing "Zakuro-san is right: you shouldn't blame yourself. You need to realize that there are some things that you can't control everything that happens in your life…"

Cherry blinked at him and then, in one movement, smacked him across the face.

"What the-"

"You're such a freaking hypocrite, Shirogane. Now, If you don't mind, I'll be going to work…"

She strode off, leaving a shocked Ryou and an ALMOST grinning Zakuro…

0o0o0o0o0

A/N: Yay! Finally! Woot!

Sorry for the wait, but school starts Monday and I had a 300 or so page book to have read that I hadn't started…but now that I'm done, I've had time to type again!

Kuomiyuki GKL: I'm sorry for making you wait! I also made you a bit less shy this chapter! Yay!

Bloodfat: Look, stop bugging me and my friends or I swear, you'll wish you were in Hell by the time I've finished with you…

Well, adios, crazy pople of the world!

(Oh, and fyi, it's 2:01am. Can u tell by my typing?)

Kira-chan - 


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